Joan Jett demands SeaWorld stop using her music

2 years ago

Joan Jett isn't happy to learn that SeaWorld has been using her hit "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" to open the "Shamu Rocks" show.

CNN says the rocker has sent SeaWorld CEO Jim Atchinson a "cease and desist" letter, saying she's "sickened" that her music "was blasted" without her consent "at sound-sensitive marine mammals." She also calls "Shamu Rocks" a "cruel and abusive" show, adding that the whales are "intelligent and feeling creatures" that "communicate by sonar and are driven crazy in the tiny tanks in which they are confined."

Jett is insisting on receiving "written confirmation" that SeaWorld has stopped using any Joan Jett and the Blackhearts song.

SeaWorld is hearing her loud and clear. Spokesman Nick Gollattscheck tells the "Orlando Sentinel" "I Love Rock 'n' Roll" was featured "as walk-in music" for the nightime performance of "Shamu Rocks," which is typically staged during the summer and not currently being staged. He also says a new Shamu show is in the works that does not feature Jett's music. Gollattscheck adds that SeaWorld Orlando "was fully licensed" to use Jett's music.

Jett is the latest artist to sever ties with SeaWorld in light of the controversy surrounding the film "Blackfish." Over the past week Heart, Barenaked Ladies, and Willie Nelson have all backed out of scheduled performances at the park.